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Better Cities May 2018

Managing Land and Emotions

Singapore’s many public goods such as housing, transport and infrastructure
were achieved by legally acquiring land without excessive cost. This is how
the Land Acquisition Act gave the state flexibility to plan for the long term,
shared Tan, who oversees the agency that is the custodian of state land in
the city-state. This ability to manage land remains vital today to ensure the
city continues having opportunities to redevelop and intensify Singapore.

Heritage preservation and economic regeneration can work hand in
hand for better urban outcomes. Key to this are the detailed strategies
and policies that ensure preservation adds to the experience of the
city, says Dr Wang, who has worked extensively in Shanghai’s planning
authority. She shares how the city conserves streets and buildings
to keep the character of a place alive. They also work closely with the
local community to ensure heritage is weaved into the everyday fabric
of city life.

Cities are increasingly redesigning their roads to make way for
pedestrians and cyclists too. Drawing examples from various cities,
this report explores alternative design standards that Singapore can
adopt to create more people-friendly roads and a car-lite environment.

At the World Built Environment Forum 2018 in London, organised by
The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), CLC Executive
Director Khoo Teng Chye shared Singapore’s urban development
story, and the country’s approach to integrated master planning and
urban governance. Urbanisation, he said, does not necessarily have to
be at the expense of the natural environment, explaining Singapore’s
efforts to reconcile the two. Panellists agreed on the need for good
governance and leadership in cities to ensure that urban development
does not worsen resource scarcity.

Seoul recently clinched the prestigious Lee Kuan Yew World City Prize for
its innovative, people-centric and collaborative engagement approaches.
Read about how the city remade Sewoon Sangga by combining top-down
and bottom-up approaches to transform the heavily vehicle-congested
area into an enjoyable public space.

Seoul will receive the Prize at the Lee Kuan Yew World City Prize Lecture
and Forum, together with fellow laureates Hamburg, Kazan, Surabaya
and Tokyo. This event will take place during the upcoming World Cities
Summit (WCS) happening from 8–12 July 2018.

“The Island”—Canary Wharf’s unfortunate nickname among Londoners
—will be rejuvenated when a new district that stitches it together with
London is complete. The upcoming district masterplanned by Allies
and Morrison promises to remedy Canary Wharf’s starkly isolated
environment with a network of public and social spaces and small-scaled
architecture that is sensitive to local cultures. There will also be streetlevel retail and dining options as well as mixed-use buildings to inject life
into a financial district that goes dead after office hours.

Urban Solutions #12 | What Makes Urban Design Work:
The High Line in New York City

Urban design requires a mix of top-down and bottomup approaches, and the High Line is a prime example
of this. Led by a civic initiative, an old elevated freight
line evaded demolishment and was transformed into
a unique linear park when planners and stakeholders
came together and agreed to intensify zoning regulations.
This spurred new housing and added a mix of uses that
complemented the surrounding neighbourhoods.

How can Orchard Road recover its buzz and become inviting
and intriguing again? Here are some ideas for revitalising
Singapore’s premier shopping district, such as catering for a
more diverse ground of users beyond just shoppers. In April
2018, property advisory group Cistri launched a six-month
multidimensional study that will contribute into a development
blueprint to further strengthen Orchard Road’s positioning and
visitor experience.